Sculpture in Fiber

TWELVE ARTISTS WORKING WITH OFF TECHNIQUES: NEDA AL-HILALI BETTY ANNE BEAUMONT RONALD H. GOODMAN FRANCOISE GROSSEN RON KING HIDEKO NISHIMURA WALTER NOTTINGHAM BARBARA SHAWCROFT JON B. WAHLING

JANUARY 27- APRIL 2, 1972 MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY CRAFTS OF THE AMERICAN CRAFTS COUNCIL Director's Statement During the last ten years an extensive international move­ ment has developed in innovative three-dimensional fiber constructions. The Museum of Contemporary Crafts gave early exposure to this direction in art in 1963 with its exhibition WOVEN FORMS. This presented work by , , Alice Adams, Claire Zeisler, and Dorian Zachai. Since, there have been several major exhi­ bitions in the and Europe which stimulated an active international exchange among textile artists. Our present exhibition, SCULPTURE IN FIBER , has been organized to focus on one special aspect of this interna­ tionally vital movement: forms created entirely without a loom by artists living in America. Through their attraction to a multiple of construction tech­ niques, in contrast to the more confining loom, these artists have gained great freedom to explore the potential of fiber both structurally and expressively. Some of these tech­ niques are knotting , macrame, braiding, plaiting, knitting, twining, wrapping, crochet, and basketry. All are single element techniques which derive strength and impact from repetition , so that the final aesthetic statement literally grows out of the technique itself. The artists have been engrossed with architectural structure to create self-supporting forms without need of armatures. Many are extremely large in scale and have an imposing presence in contrast with very small personal objects sug­ gestive of primitive fetishes. Regardless of size , the works in SCULPTURE IN FIBER develop from a highly sensitive han­ dling of material and process. But their strength and beauty as sculptural statement go far beyond technique alone. We express particular thanks to who generously shared his time and knowledge while we were preparing this exhibition. There were several exhibitions and catalogs dealing with new directions in fiber which were most enlightening in organizing SCULPTURE IN FIBER. Especially impressive were the recent " Fiber As Medium" symposium and exhibitions in Los Angeles. We would also like to acknowledge the creative stimulus of Lenore Tawney to the whole development of three­ dimensional in the 1960s.

Paul J. Smith Director Museum of Contemporary Crafts Francoise Grossen b. Neuchatel, Switzerland Education : Baccalaureat Scientifique, Neuchatel, Switzerland, 1963 School of Architecture of the Poly technical University, Lausanne, Switzerland, 1963-64 Degree in , School of Arts and Crafts, Basel, Switzerland, 1967 Graduate work with Professor B. Kester University of Ca lifornia at Los Angeles, 1968 Un iversity of California at Los Angeles, M.A., 1969 Teaching : Th e New School, , present Art School of the Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, N.Y. , present Collections: Dreyfus Fund, New York City Hyatt House, , Illinois Res idence: New York City Francoise Grossen New York, N.Y. "Inch Worm." Macrame, white piping cord. 20' x 13' (Pictured) "Love" and "Feather Serpent." Two sisal columns. Braided manila rope, natural sisal. 11' h.

The dimensions given, unless otherwise noted, are listed in order of height, width and depth.

Ron King Penobscot, Maine "Aperture." Knitted dyed-black sisal, natural jute. Wall unit 12' x 12'. "Trunk." Knitted dyed-black sisal, natural jute. 8'h ; 7'h x 3'd. floor segment. (Pictured) Ron King Hideko Nishimura b. Kalamazoo, Michigan, 1943 b. San Jose, California, 1941 Education: Education: Michigan State University, East Lansing, B S., 1966 University of California at Los Angeles, BA 1966; MA 1971 Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Teaching: Deer Isle, Maine, Summer '66 University of Southern California, Los Angeles, Scholarship 1969-70 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Fall '68 Residence: Study Seminar, Historic Textiles Berkeley, California Professional Experience: Cooper-Hewitt Museum, Department of Cultural Affairs, New York City, Spring '71, Instructor tie-dye Cooper Square Art Center, New York, Fall '70 Instructor Non-woven fabric Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine, Summer '70 Instructor weaving Jack Lenor Larsen Design Corporation, New York City, 1968-70 Associate Designer in charge of Weaving Department Residence: Penobscot, Maine Hideko Nishimura Van Nuys, California "Form within Form." Macrame, braided. 90"h. "Single Knotted Structure." Macrame, braided. 70"h. (Pictured) Ferne Jacobs Los Angeles, California Container with egg form. Coiled , natural linen, multi·colored . 6"x 4" Basket form. Knotted rayon straw, multi-colored yarns, beads. 5'/2"h; 6" dia. Basket with egg form. Knotted natural linen, wool. 6% " x 5V2" (Pictured) Courtesy, Fairtree Gallery, New York City Ferne Jacobs Ronald H. Goodman b. Chicago, Illinois, 1942 b. Los Angeles, 1941 Education : Education: California State College at San Diego, Summer '65 Los Angeles City College, AA 1959-63 Studied weaving with California State College at Long Beach, BA 1963-65 California State College at Long Beach, 1966-67 Studied with Mary Jane Leland Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, M.FA 1965-67 Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine, Summer '67 Fulbright grantee. Survey of the fabric arts and crafts of India, 1967-69 Studied with Olga Amaral Studied privately with Dominic DiMare, 1967-68 Professional Expe rience : University of California at Los Angeles, Summer '70 Professor, The College of the Potomac, Studied with Neda AI-Hilali Washington, D.C. 1970-present Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Associate Curator, The Textile Museum, Deer Isle, Maine, Summer '71 Washington, D.C. 1970-71 Assistant to Peter Collingwood Instructor, The Smithsonian Associates, Teaching : Washington, D.C. 1970-71 Artist in Residence, Miami Art Center, Florida, 1971 California State College at Los Angeles, Winter quarter '72 Curator, "South of the Himalayas" exhibition, The Textile Museum, Washington, D.C. 1969 Residence: Design Research Consultant, Concord Fabrics, Los Angeles, California Inc., 1969 Research Associate and Instructor in Fabric Design, Department of Art, Th e University of Georgia, Athens, 1969 Collections: Burpee Art Museum, Rockford, Illinois Residence: Washington, D.C. Ronald H. Goodman Washington, D.C. "Gemini, my brother." Crocheted wool. 8' x 18/1 (Pictured) "D.A.B. , In Spring." Crocheted wool, linen, silk. 18/1 x 26/1 X 9' "Inward Emblems." 11". Crocheted wool. Flexible form. 23' x 2"

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1 .' } Barbara Shawcroft San Anselmo, California "Collapsible Play Sculpture." Crocheted handspun , horsehair, mohair, wool, rayon. 32" x 24" Grouping of interchangeable forms. Crocheted mohair, cotton roving, wool, horsehair. 5" to 8"h. (Pictured) Barbara Shawcroft Betty Anne Beaumont b. Lancashire, England, 1930 b. Toronto, Canada, 1946 Education: Education : Member of the Royal Academy of Dance, Graduate Student, University of London, England (8 years) California at Berkeley, present London School of Arts and Crafts, London, England, Residence: 1952. Photography Berkeley, California Ontario College of Art, Toronto, Canada, 1958-59 Ceramics Apprenticeship with Lili Blumenau, weaver, New York City, 1961 Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine, Summer '62. Scholarship Graduate Student, California College of Arts and Crafts, Oakland, present Professional Experience: Jack Lenor Larsen Design Corporation, New York City, 1962-65 Residence: San Anselmo, California

l' 1 Betty Anne Beaumont Berkeley, California Untitled, 1971 . Plaited firehose . 9" x 9" X 8' (Pictured) Untitled, 1971 . Plaited firehose, stuffed with foam rubber. 20" x 7'6" Claire Zeisler Chicago, Illinois "Red Preview." Macrame, knotted, wrapped jute, hand dyed red cotton roving. 6'h. Courtesy Ruth Kaufmann Gallery, New York City "Red Slinky." Wrapped, red cotton roving , 52 slinkys. 4' x 5' X 9'. Courtesy Ruth Kaufmann Gallery, New York City (pictured) Hand constructed form . Crocheted, wrapped cotton. 31/8" h. Sphere. Hand constructed. Wrapped cotton. 71/2" Circum. Sculptural form . Hand constructed. Wrapped cotton, seeds. 4"h. Claire Zeisler Jon B. Wahling b. Cincinnati, Ohio, 1903 b. Council Bluffs, Iowa, 1938 Education : Educati on: Columbia University, New York Kansas City Art Institute and School of Design, Institute of Design, Chicago, Illinois Kansas City, Missouri, B.F.A., 1962 Collections: Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Dreyfus Collection, New York City Michigan, M.F.A., 1964 OBJECTS: USA The Johnson Collection of American Crafts Teaching: Kunstgewerbemuseum, Zurich, Switzerland Arts and Crafts Center of the Columbus Recreation Museum of Contemporary Crafts, New York City Department, Columbus, Ohio, 1964-present Residence: Penland School of Crafts, Penland, North Carolina, Chicago, Illinois Summers '66, '67, '71 Collections: Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts Decorative Arts Collection, Columbus, Ohio Residence: Columbus, Ohio Jon B. Wahling Columbus, Ohio " Ritualis 11. " Knotted jute. 80"h; 40" dia. Untitled. Knotted jute. 6'h; 38" dia. (Pictured) Ed Rossbach Berkeley, California "Soft Construction." Plaited newspaper construction. 24/1 x 20/1 X 1 7/1 (Pictured) "An Irrelevant Soluti on ." Plaited newspaper construction. 11/1 x 1 2/1 X 1 2/1 (Detail) Ed Rossbach Neda AI-Hilali b. Chicago, Illinois, 1914 b. Bohemia, Czechoslovakia, 1938 Educati on : Education: University of Washington, Seattle, B.A. 1940 University of California at Los Angeles, BA; Columbia University, New York, MA 1941 M.A. 1968 Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Teaching: Michigan, M.F.A. , 1947 University of California at Los Angeles, present Teaching: Scripps College, Claremont, California, present University of California, Berkeley, present Collections: Department of Design OBJECTS: USA The Johnson Collection of Collections: American Crafts OBJECTS: USA The Johnson Collection of Residence: American Crafts Venice, California Residence: Berkeley, California Neda AI-Hilali Venice, California Sculptural Form. Knotted wool, sisal, rayon , nylon . 16' x 10' "Swurple." Hanging. Knotted sisal , wool , jute, rayon , linen, nylon. 4'x 3' (Pi ctured) Walter G. Nottingham River Falls, Wisconsin "Skins of Us." Crocheted wool , rayon , horsehair, mounted on velvet platform, Plexiglas. 16/1 x 66/1 X 30/1 (Pictured) "Basket Shrine." Coiled jute, mixed media. 26/1 x 7/1 X 86/1 Walter G. Nottingham b. Great Falls, Montana, 1930 Education: All photography of show pieces by Bob Hanson, New York. Photo of SI. Cloud State College, Minnesota, B.S., 1959: Ronald Goodman by Link Harper. M.S., 1960 Haystack School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine, Graphic Design by Linda Hinrichs, Summer 67 Russell & Hinrichs Inc. Printed by Scholarship. Crafton Graphic. Typography set by Franklin Typographers Inc. Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, M.F.A., 1968 Teaching : University of Wisconsin, River Falls, Wisconsin Associate Professor of Art , 1961-present Collections: OBJECTS: USA The Johnson Collection of American Crafts Residence : River Falls, Wisconsin American Crafts Council Officers Mrs. Vanderbilt Webb R. Leigh Glover President and Treasurer Chairman of the Board May E. Walter John L. Baringer Secretary Vice-Chairman Joseph P. Fallarino Donald L. Wyckoff Assistant-Treasurer Executive Vice-President

Trustees Nicholas B. Angell De Witt Peterkin, Jr. John L. Baringer Donald Reitz Cynthia Bringle Ramona Solberg Kenneth Chorley Jean Delius William Snaith Mark Ellingson Dr. Frank Stanton R. Leigh Glover May E. Walter Robert D. Graff W. Osborn Webb August Heckscher Mrs. Vanderbilt Webb Samuel C. Johnson Walter H. Kilham, Jr. Honorary Trustees Jack Lenor Larse n Alfred Auerbach Sarah Tomerli n Lee Edward Wormley

Museum of Contemporary Crafts

Staff Paul J. Smith Director Barbara Killway Peter Ksiezopolski Kathleen MacKenzie Diana Penzner Doris Stowens Mimi Shorr Public Relations

American Crafts Council 44 West 53rd Street New York, New York 10019

Museum of Contemporary Crafts 29 West 53rd Street New York, New York 10019